


Danganronpa 3H: Seasons of Warfare

by Driven12



Category: Dangan Ronpa - All Media Types, Fire Emblem Series, Fire Emblem: Fuukasetsugetsu | Fire Emblem: Three Houses
Genre: Angst, Blood and Gore, Character Death, Fan Killing Game (Dangan Ronpa), Memory Loss, No Smut, POV Multiple
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-04-02
Updated: 2020-04-17
Packaged: 2021-03-01 02:09:15
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Major Character Death
Chapters: 3
Words: 14,735
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23437471
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Driven12/pseuds/Driven12
Summary: The class of Garreg Mach Monastery have been thrown into a Fodlan alternative of the ever-popular killing game. Nobody remembers why they're there, what their purpose is, or what has happened to the world around them. All they know is that this black-and-white bear who calls himself Monokuma is wanting them to partake in some sort of killing game. In a battle for survival, a battle to keep from falling into despair, the Ultimate Students of Garreg Mach Ultimate Academy must persevere through this twisted game of Danganronpa.Chapter 3: After the first motive has been revealed, Edelgard and Claude try to help by uncovering the connections between the motives. Everyone's seem to be similar to one other person's, with a singular exception. What sort of sinister message is hidden in these motives?
Comments: 10
Kudos: 28





	1. A New Game...Plus?

**Author's Note:**

> Hello, and welcome to Fire Emblem Danganronpa! This little killing game serves as a Fodlan chapter of the killing game's massive reach, and is fully prepared to claim any and every student wandering into its midst. Of course, that means that a multiple PoV is a great way to keep any and all readers on their toes for the time being! Throughout this killing game, you won't just be seeing things from the point of view of the student in the first chapter; the Daily School life and Killing School life will have different perspectives from a variety of students, purely to keep things interesting. However, along with that there are inevitably students who will not be given a focus, half because it would be too easy to tell who was safe and who wasn't if I promised something like that. 
> 
> Also, not every student from Three Houses is featured here, and that's not because I dislike any of them! As you'll see by reading, the students were chosen and distributed to suit a number of variables; those who had easy-to-pick ultimate talents, an equal number of males and females, and equal distribution across houses, with one left over. I tried to do my best to give everyone a fair shot without infringing on anyone else, although there may have been a few characters I partially chose more because I felt I could write them easier in relation to others. And then some characters are specifically being kept from the game because they serve a purpose in the game's story later on. No telling who, though ;)
> 
> Anyways, enjoy reading and have fun! I'm not sure if the murder scenarios I have lined up are as necessarily foolproof as I've written them out to be, but if not then please excuse any plot holes or apparently simplistic solutions I may be writing up! I hope you have fun reading!

“Ugh, damn it all.”

I brought my hand up to my forehead, which was pounding painfully and forcefully. What had I done last night to get myself feeling so terrible? It couldn't have been anything big, or else it should have been resolved quickly. Surely, Teach would have…

Wait, who?

The thought flooded from my head the moment it had entered, leaving me feel suddenly and completely empty. What day was it? Where was I? Had I made it to Fodlan, or was I still stuck in Almyra? Where, exactly, were those places again? What was my name?

I breathed, trying to get my bearings. First thing first, my name and status. I knew it was Khalid, of course, but the name I had adopted…Claude von Riegan. I was here to serve as the heir to the Leicester Alliance once my grandfather passed, and hopefully bridge the gap between Fodlan and Almyra as the leader of the Alliance. That meant I was at least in Fodlan, in general. But more specifically, here was…

Garreg Mach Monastery, the Fodlan chapter of the Ultimate Academy. I had just arrived here as the Ultimate Tactician, one of the many Ultimates who went to school in this so-called Academy. I was even one of the higher up Ultimates, in part due to the nature of my crest. Not everyone who had a crest entered into the Academy, of course, and not everyone in the Academy had a crest, as far as I had been told. In an attempt to really bring forth the nature of hope to all of Fodlan, people of all walks of life were allowed…as long as they paid sufficient money for it. It was just that people who had crests were given a bit more value and priority, and their talents tended to carry a bit more clout than other talented individuals.

But none of that history explained why my head hurt so horribly, or why I had no idea what was actually going on. I was inside the Ultimate Academy, right? I remembered walking up the mountain to where it was stationed, and seeing a green-haired woman waiting at the peak to welcome us in. Aside from that…

_Ding Dong_  
_Bing Bong_

A chime rang throughout the room I was in, and I felt a chill run down my spine. The sound wasn’t a natural bell. It sounded fake, somehow, as though fabricated from a sort of mechanism. A similarly false, echoing voice rang out as it faded away.

“Ahem! Attention, all Ultimate Students! Everyone, please gather at the Dining Hall for your induction ceremony as soon as possible. Tardiness will be rewarded with swift and immediate death! I can’t wait to ea…er, meet, all of you!”

The voice echoed away as well, and I shook my head numbly. If that was the voice of Archbishop Rhea, I couldn’t understand how the people of Fodlan managed to keep from overthrowing her the moment she opened her mouth for a sermon. Whoever that was, they were insufferable to listen to.

“Anyways, I probably ought to go ahead and make my way to the Dining Hall…wherever that is?”

I walked out of the room I was in and presently realized I was in a hallway inside of one of the buildings. Was that my dorm room, then? Maybe I had just passed out and was brought here after I arrived. That was probably pretty embarrassing for my fellow Golden Deer...whoever they were? Judging by the sound and feel of the ground I was walking on, I was probably on the second or third floor. I had to say probably due to the fact that I couldn’t see outside the windows, which were bolted shut.

“Well, this is going to be lovely.” I muttered. Whoever was in charge of Garreg Mach, they were way to overprotective for their own good.

The outside of the Monastery was a much easier sight. In spite of some crumbled walls and buildings in disarray, the land itself was beautiful and slightly. Stepping out, I saw a greenhouse on my right side, with a beautiful, sparkling lake laid out in front of me. And just to the left of that lake, with smoke piping gently out, was…that had to be the Dining Hall, right? The smell coming from the building couldn't hint to it being anything aside from that.

“Aw, all right! Who’s ready to eat?!”

I was almost barreled aside by an obnoxious kid with bright blue hair. He was short and impish, but I could tell by looking at him that he was the type of guy who adored fights. He was decked out in what would have been an impressive brawling outfit, if what he was wearing could even be called an outfit. His skin was mostly exposed, save for tights that saved his more explicit body parts from being revealed and a sash that partially obscured his chest. It tucked under the belt around his waist, ending just past his crotch to further cover him. He wore long, fingerless gloves on either side, which I assumed was to help protect his hands. I could already sort of guess a part of who this guy was.

“Pardon me, friend. Seems like we’re heading to the same place. Mind if I tag along?”

The boy turned around, looking annoyed before his face settled into a relatively eased emotion. “Oh, heya! The name’s Caspar, Caspar von Bergliez. I’m known around Adrestia as the Ultimate Brawler!” Saying this, he made a sort of fighting stance, brining his arms up in a stereotypical boxer’s pose. “I’m making it my goal to beat down every single Ultimate before I graduate from the Academy!”

I laughed easily. I wasn’t sure how actually strong Caspar was, but he was sort of charming in a “scruffy mutt you can’t look away from” kind of way. I almost wanted to pat him on the head, but I doubted he would appreciate that.

“All right, Caspar. What say you and I make our way down to the Dining Hall together and we’ll see who’s going to take you up on that offer. My name’s Claude, by the way. They know me far and wide as the Ultimate Tactician.”

“Aw, a tactician?” Caspar pouted. “Those guys don’t usually do much fighting, right? It wouldn’t be much fun with you, huh?”

The walk to the Dining Hall was short enough, but we still somehow seemed to be comparatively late. When we arrived, roughly a dozen people already seemed to have occupied the Hall itself.

_Ding Dong_  
_Bing Bong_

“Ahem! Sorry, it seems all students gathered quicker than I anticipated! Please, feel free to introduce yourselves properly before the ceremony begins! My apologies for the wait.”

A white-haired girl barely hid a grin under her gloved hand. “Well, that certainly isn’t the archbishop’s voice. I wonder what exactly Garreg Mach is planning for us, with this sort of ridiculous display.” She herself didn’t look much less ridiculous to me, though I supposed that was a matter of taste. She was decked out in a blazing red dress that covered her fully, with matching gloves and a cape that flowed back behind her. She looked in every part commanding and controlled, even beautiful, but the overbearing nature of it was just too much for my eyes. She noticed me averting my gaze and walked forward in an almost forced manner.

“My name is Edelgard von Hresvelg. Ultimate Emperor. To whom do I have the pleasure of speaking with?”

I jolted as I finally noticed a figure lurking behind her: dressed in an all-black tuxedo, with a large cape draping over his shoulders and covering his torso, he sneered at me with a sort of look that sent shivers down my spine. He looked like the type that enjoyed sitting in a dark room, covering his face with that cape and laughing evilly to himself as he plotted someone's imminent demise. “I am Hubert Vestra. I am referred to as the Ultimate Advisor, thanks to my service for Her Majesty. And you are…?”

I swallowed down the nervousness that washed over me by looking at the man, and turned instead to look at Edelgard. “Name’s Claude von Riegan. I’m the Ultimate Tactician.” Suddenly, I felt the dreaded realization that I was probably going to say that quite a bit today. “Pleasure’s all mine, your Majesty.”

“Von Riegan? I heard that name before.” Edelgard said, mildly surprised. “I suppose that means you’re part of the Alliance territory in the East. Well, I’m more than happy to be able to make the acquaintance while we can.”

“Well. It seems we have both major members of Alliance and Adrestian territories here.” Joining the group was a smiling boy who seemed about the same age as me and Edelgard, with a well combed and tied hairdo that swept over his eyes as he smiled at the both of us. In contrast to his light smile and appearance, his outfit was pitch black armor, with traces of blue along the front and a blue cape hanging off his shoulder. “I suppose it’s only right for a member of the Kingdom to join in the conversation, yes? Dimitri Alexandre Blaiddyd, Ultimate Soldier. A pleasure to meet you both.”

“Ultimate Soldier?” A ghost of a smile flitted across Edelgard’s lips. “How interesting that Faerghus’s leader takes on the role of one who follows orders while the rest of us display roles of command in our own talents. Are you quite sure you’re supposed to be the one fit to rule?”

The prince’s smile turned pained. “You wound me, Edelgard. Surely you understand that our talents don’t define all of who we are. I-“

“Yes, yes, Dimitri. I was toying with you, really. Is it really so easy to rile you up?” Edelgard waved her hand. “I’d hope you would have learned a measure of restraint by now.”

Dimitri’s smile shrunk down into less than a pained smile. Now it seemed like a downright grimace. “Perhaps you are right. At times I do seem to grow more perturbed than is truly necessary. Perhaps I could lead from your aloof example.”

I suddenly felt the need to break things up. “Hey, hey. Your Highnesses shouldn’t really be making a scene like this in the middle of the Dining Hall, right? Everyone else is probably gonna stare, you know?”

I was half right. Certain members of the hall seemed to simply stare, looking entirely confused by the display going on. The two royals looked away, suitably abashed.

“Well, anyways. There are others to meet and greet, are there not? Come, Hubert.”

The classroom cycled around, and I found myself introduced to yet more people. A girl dressed in a crisp orange jacket paired with leggings and black gloves who introduced herself as Leonie Pinelli, the Ultimate Mercenary. A reclusive girl in a multicolored blue robe with birds resting on her shoulder and shadows under her eyes: Marriane von Edmund, the Ultimate Veterinarian. A genuine-looking young man with large, thick glasses and a large quill tucked behind his ear was Ignatz Victor, the Ultimate Artist. Finally, there was Hilda Valentine Goneril, a bubbly, pink-haired girl with lavish and equally pink blouse and tights who proclaimed herself as the Ultimate Heiress. These were the members of the Academy who had come from the area of Leicester.

From Faerghus, accompanying Dimitri, was a mix of two boys and two girls. Sylvain Jose Gautier, a young man who was pleasant in appearance with an open-buttoned shirt that fully exposed his chest and tight pants that left little to the imagination. He called himself the Ultimate Philanderer, which disgusted me more than it surprised me. Next to him was Ashe Ubert, a more earnest boy who looked even younger than he really was. He wore a pleasant-looking blue jacket with a hood tucked behind it, with causal slacks to complete the look. I wouldn’t have expected it from such an earnest-looking kid, but he was the Ultimate Thief. I found that fact somewhat unsettling and excused myself from the conversation. The two girls were Ingrid Brandl Galatea and Annette Fantine Dominic. Ingrid was a resolute and stern knight with long, flowing hair and a light, breathable-looking armor that didn’t seem to weigh her down. Of course, her talent was the Ultimate Knight. Opposing her, Annette appeared much more frail, her red hair tucked girlishly behind her ears and down her pretty white-and-blue robe. Her talent was the Ultimate Scholar.

Finally, Edelgard was similarly accompanied by four students. Hubert aside, there was Caspar, who I had met earlier, and two other girls named Petra Macneary and Dorothea Arnault, who seemed completely opposite in their appearance. Petra looked about as foreign as I was, with tatoos spanning across her face and arms and only sparse clothing keeping her covered. I was surprised to learn she was the Ultimate Hunter, though I supposed the hunting she partook in was a different sort than I was used to. Dorothea, on the other hand, was the definition of a Fodlan beauty. Her porcelain skin was perfectly framed by dark and luscious hair, which further trailed along a stunning red dress that trailed behind her. She was a tad proud and cautious towards me, but she seemed a nice enough person. Her talent was the Ultimate Songstress.

The only one left over was someone who looked even more childish than the rest of the group. He pouted in the corner for most of the time, refusing to talk to most of the people. I noticed that he had a scar just above his eye, and his clothes were less than magnificent compared to the rest of the students. I wandered over to him.

“Hey! My name’s Claude von Riegan. I’m the Ultimate Tactician from Leicester. What would your name happen to be?”

The boy looked up at me grumpily, then aside. “I’m Cyril. I’m called the Ultimate Custodian, but I kind of just do odd jobs around the monastery for Lady Rhea. I don’t really know about being called an official Ultimate or anything, though. I’m just going to do the same thing I was doing before, just with the school supporting me, too.”

I nodded my head thoughtfully. That was definitely an interesting interpretation for the school to take. It seemed more generous from Lady Rhea than I imagined to allow Ultimate status to someone just doing their job, especially for someone as young looking as Cyril. How old was this kid, again?

My thoughts were interrupted as that familiar chime rang throughout the hall. Another announcement, then?

“Sorry to keep you waiting, everyone! I believe we have all necessary preparations underway, so let’s begin with the ceremony!”

No sooner were the words uttered than I felt something shoot past my face. As quick as my eyes were, even I couldn’t guess what the object was as it shot around the room. Finally, it rebounded against the back wall and traversed the room once more to land at the front of the Dining Hall, hitting the top of the serving counter as though it were a performing gymnast. It took a long time for the image to fully form in my head.

Standing proudly in front of us, grinning maliciously in silence, was a black-and-white stuffed bear.

“Um…” Ignatz squinted, as though he wondered if his glasses were failing him. At the moment, I couldn’t particularly blame him. Stuff like this was too surreal, even for me. What exactly was Garreg Mach planning with this little charade?

“Ahem! Ahem, sorry.” The annoying bear squeaked. Wait…it could talk?!

I didn’t even have time to give voice to that complaint before it continued. “Yes, yes, I’m a talking stuffed bear. Believe me, you wouldn’t even begin to understand the number of complaints I’ve had from my mere existence. So, shut up about it and let me move on with my introduction. My name is Monokuma, and I’m going to be your headmaster for the duration of your stay here at Garreg Mach Ultimate Academy!”

That didn’t sound right. Not terribly sure if this was the right move, I raised my hand. “Hey, Monokuma. I thought Lady Rhea was supposed to be the headmaster or whatever of this Academy. Isn’t this all some sort of ploy or whatever on her part?”

Monokuma grinned fiercely. “Nope, nope! Honestly, I don’t know a thing about this Lady Rhea or whoever, so I’d prefer if you shut up about her. Actually, I’ve got another motive entirely for your little stay here compared to the boring stuff she was always thinking about.”

After the initial display between Edelgard and Dimitri, it was interesting to see the former suddenly appear so flustered. “Oh? And what, may I ask, is your exact intention with us in her stead? Or need I even ask such a question of someone of your caliber?”

The bear apparently took that as a wonderous opportunity, grinning ear to ear with intense malice.

“Why, I intend for you all to enter into a Killing game against each other, of course.”

The words caused a ripple of consternation throughout the room. Some of the sharper students who understood his meaning straightaway immediately directed their attentions towards each other, distrust filling their eyes. Others only looked up in complete confusion, as though trying to understand his meaning.

“A…killing game?” This from Ashe, who stared up at the bear uncomprehendingly. “Wh-what exactly do you mean by making us participate in a killing game against each other?”

The stuffed bear yawned. “Geez, you’re a dim bunch. It means exactly what it means, stupid! You’re in a competition of murder, a test of survival. It’s a Killing Game in the truest sense of the word!”

“But, why?” Dorothea cried out harshly. “What would you possibly stand to gain by having a bunch of students kill each other? This makes no sense!”

“Of course, it makes no sense to you.” Monokuma hummed happily. “But who cares about that? This game is for others to enjoy, and for you to come to understand. You’ll figure it out as you go along…or, well, maybe you won’t! Puhuhuhuhu!”

The room was filled with a stunned silence for some time, before Caspar broke the silence.

“Hey, what are we hanging around listening to this chump about? Garreg Mach is an open-town site, right? If we want to leave, all we have to do is-“

“Actually, it’s not. I started as Cyril spoke up behind me, his voice dull and annoyed. “If you’d have checked before ya came in here, you’d have seen the place is pretty badly blocked off. I’ve looked all over since I woke up, and the whole monastery’s like that. I haven’t found a single safe place to exit in the whole monastery.”

I turned to him, suddenly curious. “Cyril, you said that you’ve been here serving under Rhea the entire time, right? When did all of this happen? Surely you have some idea.”

“I don’t know anything, really.” Cyril shook his head, dumbfounded. “But hey, that reminds me…where’s Lady Rhea? If this toy’s doing something like this, then what’s up with her?”

“What? What…oh, what indeed.” Monokuma giggled. “Well, isn’t that just a revolutionary mystery? Maybe you’ll find out if you survive long enough…or if you successfully kill someone.”

“ ‘Successfully’?” Hubert questioned sharply. “What exactly entails a successful murder in this case?”

“Puhu! I’m glad you asked!” Monokuma exclaimed. “It just so happens that we have a series of steps and rules you must go through in order to fully exist in this killing game. Once a classmate of yours has been murdered, you’ll be allowed a time period to search for clues about their murder. The exact time frame isn’t really important; you just gotta make sure you find everything possible you can. After that, it’s time for what I like to call a class trial!”

The words sent a chill down my back. A class trial…something like that sounded bad just from the get-go.

“In a class trial, it’s the blackened murderer versus the spotless in terms of whether the truth is revealed. If you sweet, spotless lambs manage to corner the blackened in their despicable deed, then you get to live another day while the blackened receives their due punishment. But if you guess the wrong choice, I’ll punish everyone besides the blackened one, and they’ll be allowed to go free! Doesn’t that sound so thrilling?”

“That sounds horrifying.” Dimitri responded, aghast. “You mean to tell us we’re only allowed survival at the cost of another’s life? Such an existence is completely…” he trailed off, shaking his head angrily.

I thought to question the bear now, my mind racing at the implications of this game. “So what about you, huh? If you’re heading this killing game, doesn’t that mean you make all the rules and stuff? Shouldn’t we be concerned about you, then?”

“Oh, of course not!” Monokuma said happily. “After all, just as you said, there’s rules to this game. Like, for instance, I’m not allowed to harm a single student on campus unless threatened. And I’m also off-limits for killing. Try messing with me and I’ll show you an easy punishment time, free of charge! As for you whelps, you’re not allowed to go on mass slaughters or anything like that. Try killing any more than two people between trials and I’m going to intervene, in the harshest way possible. Get it?”

A part of me wanted to test the grimacing bear in front of me, to test him out and see whether his threats were worth backing. But if they were, in any shape or form, then it would be immensely stupid for me to try-“

“Oh, really? You think you’re tough and all?” Caspar lunged forward, grabbing at the stuffed bear. “I’ll send you flying, you worthless piece of-“

“Caspar, knock it off!” Ashe slapped Caspar away from the Monokuma, terror filling his eyes. “We have no idea what this thing is capable of, remember? Please, have at least a little self-preservation.”

“What?” Caspar leered at the Ultimate Thief. “You saying you’re willing to just accept what he’s saying? That’s such a coward’s way of thinking! After all, he-“

“Puhuhu.”

That laugh sent more chills down my spine. Whatever that Monokuma was, he was seriously a messed up piece of work.

“Puhuhuhuhu. I admire the intense dedication to being a tough guy, but you really ought to be more cautious in situations like this. It’s like Mr. Ultimate Thief here says, right? You have no idea what I’m capable of. Why should you expect I’m something you can destroy so easily? Isn’t being aware of your opponent one of the first rules of fighting?”

A dead silence filled the room. After what felt like an eternity, the bear huffed.

“Ah, well. I suppose it makes more sense to just show you guys, after all. Take a look and see, huh? It’d be easier for you to just see, right?”

Plopping off the dining counter, the bear plodded outside to the gardens. Hesitant, I began leading the members of the Academy out to follow him. I had a horrible feeling about this.

“Oh, Demonic Beasts! Show me the power of your terror, and make these fools realize how far they have left to come!”

The roars and shrieks that filled the air were terrifying. Several students backed up or cowered away as large, monstrous creatures lumbered into the academy. Edelgard, Dimitri, Caspar, Leonie, and Petra all surged to the forefront, defiant looks filling their eyes as they prepared for a fight. But the beasts made no move towards them, only bowing towards Monokuma and dropping…objects…onto the ground before somberly returning to wherever they came from.

“Feast your eyes, kids! This is what you have in store for defying me.”

I stared what the Demonic Beasts had given, but I couldn’t believe it, no matter how long I looked. Because what was there…made no sense. We would have known if something like this had happened, right? It couldn’t be that this was real, right?

Laying on the ground were several bodies. A blonde woman with a glowing orange sword at her hip and a defiantly strong build to her body. A raven-haired woman by her side, lithe yet powerful in her own right. Two giants of men, one relatively youthful looking and round-faced and one far older, with the sign of the church of Seiros on both of their armor. An older man and woman, the man in a long overcoat with a shattered monocle lying beside him and the woman in a scant dress and tattered coat. One of the corpses looked like it had been dead longer than the others, another knight in orange armor, his orange-brown hair tied back in a braid behind his head. Alongside him was a much younger man with teal hair and a long, cape-like coat trailing behind him and a sword at his side that glowed similarly to the blonde woman’s.

All of them were dead, their bodies rent apart, broken, or run through. I didn’t recognize a single one of the bodies, but others did. Cries rang out among the students.

“Cassandra? How…how can this be?!”

“Father! No, please, it can’t be true!”

“Miss Shamir? No…what happened?”

“P-Professor Hanneman…”

“Manuela! No, please, I wanted to-!”

“Captain Jeralt?! You monster, how could you have-?!”

I didn’t watch my classmates break down over the bodies Monokuma had deposited. Instead, I looked straight at the bear who had deposited them. His grin grew wider and wider as the wails of grief and anguish rang throughout the crowd.

“See, now, kids? I’m not someone you’re supposed to mess with, you hear? And this is only a taste of the havoc I can really bring about, so you better be careful not to get on my bad side. So play nice with me, and get to killing each other. Or just hang around here and bore yourselves to death if you so choose. Either way, I expect this killing game to begin.”

The bear jumped way, back behind a row of hedges, and completely disappeared. I was left, looking around the devastated group I was now forced into a killing game with. A few of the students simply looked at the scene, completely devastated. Caspar, Ashe, Petra, Ignatz, Hubert, Hilda, and Sylvain all gathered around, either staring on or trying to comfort those who took the losses more personally.

Dorothea was sobbing over the corpse of the scantily clad woman, who I presumed was a teacher figure to her in the past. She looked as though she could have been a songstress in the past. Leonie was similarly devastated by the death of one of the knights, who I shockingly realized was dressed quite similarly to her. An idol of hers, perhaps? Annette clung to the body of the oldest-looking knight, and I remembered she cried out to him as her father. My heart constricted, but I forced myself to look on.

Cyril and Dimitri were bent over the forms of the two women, each holding the hand of one of the women tenderly. Ingrid sat on the other side of the blonde woman, an immense sadness filled in her eyes.

The only one who looked out of the ordinary was Edelgard. She clung to nobody, but simply knelt by the form of the younger man with teal-colored hair. Briefly pursing her lips, she knelt forward and rested her hand on his chest. It was as if she was looking for a heartbeat, but it was obvious the man had been run through horribly. There was no possible chance of survival from him. Grimacing angrily, she removed her hand and stood back up, turning tightly on her heels as she walked away. I followed along with her, suddenly feeling exhausted. I had just woken up bare hours ago, but I wanted to go to sleep already. We went our separate ways at the stairs without a word, and I trudged silently into my room. From there, I looked silently around, unsure of what to think, or even if I was capable of thinking. Frustrated, I flopped onto my bed.

I didn’t go to sleep for a very long time. Going to sleep after something like that was asking for the impossible, after all. So I just lay there, staring up at the ceiling as the hours ticked by. When I finally went to sleep, it was with a singular question in mind.

What exactly had I gotten myself into, coming to Fodlan in this state?


	2. Suspicious Monastery

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Claude tries to bring out more of the mystery of Garreg Mach's current situation, but it seems every line of inquiry only leads to more frustrations and more questions. Everything seems unsolvable until Monokuma calls the students in for a seemingly pointless meeting.

We spent most of our time the next day looking for ways we could possibly escape. And by all accounts, Cyril’s approximation appeared correct. The normally broad and spanning gate to enter Garreg Mach had been totally sealed up in a smooth wall that blocked all entry. Petra and I both attempted to scale the walls of the monastery to make our way over while Cyril watched, but we never even got close to overcoming it. Ingrid, Dorothea, and Leonie attempted to find an escape by climbing down below the bridge that spanned across to a Cathedral, but their progress was halted by Demonic Beasts. The three were swiftly returned back to their rooms, and all three advised heavily that no further attempt be made to escape in such a way. Ashe, Hubert, and Marianne disappeared for a time, professing knowledge of underground catacombs that could be used to escape in a similar way. When the three returned, it was with complete terror and despair. Even Hubert had a distant, scared look in his eyes as he confirmed further exploration in that area would be futile, at least for now.

We had decided early on that all current participants of the killing game would be split off into groups of three. We had initially tried for a man-to-man buddy system before Ignatz pointed out that up to two members of the Academy could be singled out for murder; in such a case, a consistent group of three would make it easy to figure out who the murderer among the group was, at the very least. Perhaps it was a more brutal method of reasoning, but it made sense from a logical perspective.

Failing the perspectives of being able to find escape routes from the monastery, we split off in attempts to find even slight methods of communication. Marianne refused to offer up her birds to be messengers for fear that Monokuma had some hidden trap waiting to destroy them if they alighted. There were no visible animals that we could see to be smuggled out of the monastery either, all cats and dogs completely eradicated from the premises. 

“It’s really weird, actually, now that I think about it.” Cyril mused. “I mean, there were lots of cats and dogs all over the place when I was working here just a little while ago. So why, all of a sudden, did they…” He grimaced unhappily and rested his head back on his arms. I took the moment to intervene.

“That reminds me, Cyril, there’s something I’ve been meaning to ask of you. How long exactly was it between your time working as a custodian and the time we met for class?” Cyril considered the question thoughtfully.

“Ummm….I dunno, really. It depends on how long I was out. I thought it would only be, like, overnight or something. But if Catherine and Miss Shamir both died during that time, I can’t believe it would be that short. They’re both super strong, and if Miss Shamir thought she was in trouble she’d be able to hide herself almost perfectly before something happened.” 

I sighed, resting back against the table. I had been hoping for somewhat more of a straightforward answer, but perhaps that was asking too much for this current point in time.

“But isn’t it weird, you think? That all of us remember coming here, but it cuts out right after. And suddenly everyone who was supposed to be here and working under the archbishop turns up dead, like some sort of surreal horror story. I feel like there has to be something missing, something really important that’s in this whole story that we’re just missing.” I turned to Cyril for his response, only to start as I realized that the poor kid was curled up against himself, eyes tight and staring forward. “Woah, Cyril! You okay?”

“You don’t have to remind me…” he muttered. “It’s bad enough I don’t know what’s going on with Lady Rhea, but how do ya think it feels to hear you telling me all about what I should know? I don’t know, all right? So quit asking me about it.”

I grimaced apologetically. “Ah, sorry.”

We lapsed into an uncomfortable silence, and I suddenly felt the need to be anywhere but there.

“Ah, Cyril, I’m going to go ask the others about what they remember. Hope that’s okay, yeah?”

“Sure, whatever.” The kid said sullenly. “Not like I really care.”

I turned to leave the hall, but my exit was interrupted as a giant mass of black and blue armor blocked the door. “Ah, Claude! And here I was just wondering when I would get the chance to talk to you. Care for a spare moment?”

Truthfully, I didn’t want to. There were a number of people I would rather talk to than His Royal Highness, but the look in his eyes made me feel like I wasn’t really being given an option to say “no”. Besides, it was possible that Dimitri himself had some information that I could use if I directed the conversation the right way. I tried my best to give him a winning smile.

“Well, I wouldn’t want to be in His Highness’s bad graces, now would eye? What has you all interested in little old me, huh?”

The Ultimate Soldier smiled sheepishly. “Well, actually, it’s about your past before entering the Ultimate Academy.”

My blood froze. There was no way that the Prince had figured out my secret this quickly, was there? I hadn’t even been at the school for a week, so it was practically impossible to get all the information he would have to had gotten to piece everything together, even if we had access to the entirety of the school and the outside world. What exactly was the prince trying to pull?

“Ah, really? What about my life could possibly interest a prince like you?”

Dimitri shook his head, still grinning sheepishly. “Please, Claude, don’t act so coy at a time like this. It’s not anything you need take caution about or be afraid of, I was just wondering about people you may have known that could have been here at the Academy.”

I titled my head quizzically. “People who…could have been here?” The phrase itself didn’t make sense. Of course, the students here at the Academy were all that was left, but nobody I knew aside from that. “If you’re talking about the slaughtered faculty we saw earlier, than I’ve got nothing. I think Leonie knew one of them, so-“

“That’s not what I mean.” Dimitri interrupted with a wave of his hand. “I’m talking about other students. Ingrid, Sylvain and I all thought about it, and we agree…there are students that we feel should have been here, but aren’t.” 

I tilted my head at the phrase, completely caught off guard. “Students who should have been here. You mean, like, classmates more than just the sixteen of us? And wait, how do you and Sylvain and Ingrid know each other, anyways?”

Dimitri blushed, looking down slightly at the question. “We were friends before entering the Academy. Friends from childhood, actually. And that’s the biggest issue in all this…there were a couple of other friends between us that we’re sure were set to join the Academy alongside us. And yet, even now, they’re completely absent. Such a dissonance is truly unnerving, and we can’t make sense of it. Felix Hugo Fraldarius, The Ultimate Vigilante. Dedue Molinaro, the Ultimate Bodyguard. Annette even came forward and informed us of a childhood friend she had she was certain of coming, Mercedes von Martiz, the Ultimate Doctor. We’re all sure they intended to be here, and yet all are equally absent. It makes no sense, speaking frankly.”

“Is that so?” I rested my arms behind my head, desperately trying to keep myself from grinning broadly. As a matter of fact, that was exactly the type of situation I was wondering about myself, having seen the faculty members and the students’ reactions to them. To a certain point, it seemed like there was definitely something missing, some sort of secret or past that wasn’t being explained to us. I desperately wanted to understand what exactly we weren’t remembering, or what we weren’t being told.

And more than anything, there was still that faint memory of that word, and the person associated with it: “Teach”. Who…could that have been?

I shook myself from that feeling and looked to Prince Dimitri. “Well, Your Highness, I’ll certainly do my best to ask around. I can’t say I really have memories of anyone who was supposed to be here, but I can certainly see if anybody from the Alliance has anything. Maybe I’ll even be able to scout out some of the Eagles, too. What say you?”

Dimitri’s smile conveyed an intense sense of relief, to the point of even making me somewhat uncomfortable. “Oh, thank you, Claude. Believe me, I really think this will help us get to the bottom of this insane mystery and finally understand that bear’s intentions with us. If you’re willing to cooperate, that will give me so much more ease of mind.”

I spent the rest of the day inquiring after the Adrestian and Alliance students, drudging up any and all kinds of information I could get my hands on. Unfortunately, the only real members I could drag anything from were Ignatz, Leonie, Dorothea, and Caspar.

“Now that you mention it, one of my closest friends was set to enter the Academy himself.” The Ultimate Artist mused. “His name is Raphael Kirsten, and he was supposed to join as…well, the Ultimate Big Brother, which is a title that fits him rather well.” I noticed a slight blush creep up onto Ignatz’s face, but I decided to ignore it, following my better judgement. The small boy continued. “Honestly, I’m sort of happy he’s not involved in a killing game like this. He’s far too kindhearted for his own good, and I’d think he would sooner sacrifice himself for the sake of everyone else than take a life. I don’t think I could stand the thought of him dying for anyone, especially me.” Deciding that was enough information for now, I moved on to my next subject.

“Yeah, the captain was among some of the faculty that damned bear showed us.” Leonie sniffled. She was still taking the loss incredibly hard, but she was a strong girl. She spent most of her time now fishing out in the lake as she stared thoughtfully across the waters. “I knew him personally for a couple of weeks, but I haven’t been able to talk to him much since then. I didn’t even know he was coming to the Academy, in all honesty. He shouldn’t have been here at all. I just…don’t understand how all this happened.” She jerked her line back in too quickly, and cursed as it snapped from the force of her pull. “Sorry, Claude. I should probably…go fix this, or something.”

Dorothea almost completely shut me out. She was in her room most days, locked away and unwilling to talk to anyone. I only got her to tell me small bursts of information as I visited.

Visit #1: “Yes, I was a songstress under Manuela when she performed at the opera. She and I were…very close during that time. Of course, I looked up to her more than anyone else, but what does it matter now? Please, just give me some time to figure all this out.”

Visit #2: “She was teaching here long before I came to the Academy. In fact, she was one of my biggest motivations for being here. I really do admire her greatly, you know. Or…I guess that’s did, now. I’m sorry…give me a moment.”

Visit #3" “Other students? Well, there is one I think I heard was coming, even though I hoped I would never see his face again. I’m sure I never heard what his title was supposed to be, though I’m sure I wouldn’t be surprised if it was ‘Ultimate Noble’ or some other nonsense like that. I can only hope he was slaughtered like the rest of the faculty. That might have brought some good from whatever freakshow this is.”

From there, the only lead I got was from Caspar, who seemed much more perturbed than the rest of the class about that line of logic. 

“Ah…yeah, that’s actually something that’s been bugging me, too. See, I had a really good…friend…back at the Empire. Name was Linhardt von Hevring, the son of my dad’s biggest rival. He’s totally not like his dad at all, though; the only was he was going to enter the Ultimate Academy was by being the Ultimate Lazy Bum or the Ultimate Sleeper…which is exactly how he got in, actually.” The young man sighed and brought a hand up to his head. “Can you believe that guy got entered in on the basis of being the Ultimate Nap-Taker? What Ultimate Talents are they even accepting here, you know? But then, he didn’t really show up, and now I’m kinda worried about it all. Though, I guess I wasn’t hiding it very well if you’re coming to talk about it, huh?”

I shook my head in response, completely earnest for once. “Not at all, actually. It’s more that I’m on a mission to get as much information about what’s going on here as possible. Some of the students reported having friends that were supposed to come that didn’t, so I wanted to see what could possibly have been going on in order to make sense of all this. Thanks for your input, by the way. I’m positive it’ll help make headway for how this whole mystery plays out.”

That was what I said as I left the Ultimate Brawler, but the truth was that I had absolutely no idea what I was doing. I simply sat at the desk in my room, notes splayed out in front of me, for hours on end trying to take everything into consideration. From what I had heard from Dimitri, there wasn’t much that seemed to link the various potential members that had gone missing. Some had crests and others didn’t, some were kind and considerate while others were arrogant or self-centered, some had many friends and others only had one or two. Frankly, it seemed that the particular students left behind had little to no rhyme or reason to them. But there had to have been a particular reason why we were kept, right? Something that had made us different from those who weren’t here…

_Ding Dong_  
_Bing Bong_

I groaned, already recognizing what was about to happen.

“Ahem! Attention, all students! Please, everyone head to the three classrooms located at the center of the monastery. It’s time for a very special demonstration for you all!”

A very special demonstration, indeed. I could only imagine how painful or annoying the bear could possibly be for this “demonstration” to be as necessary as he was asking for it to be. But at the very least, it could give us answers, right?

That was what I thought as I exited my dorm room, but every step I took towards the classroom filled me more and more with intense anxiety. It wasn’t necessary a logical type of anxiety, where I already knew what to expect and dreaded it; it was more of an instinctual fear, as though I knew at a base level that whatever lay in the future was going to be intense and disturbing in equal measure. 

All of the members of the Leicester Alliance were there as I approached the classroom, though none seemed particularly excited. Leonie still seemed to be in a mood, mindlessly picking at the string of a bow she had likely been practicing target shooting with. Ignatz simply seemed flustered, looking around at the other students in a nervous daze. Marianne was withdrawn and solemn as usual, and Hilda simply looked…bored.

Next to them, the Blue Lions looked equally agitated, though I noticed one or two members seemed to be missing. By looks alone, it was probably the Ultimate Philanderer Sylvain, as well as…Ashe, the Ultimate Thief. Among the Black Eagles, only the Ultimate Brawler Caspar was missing.

“Hey, hey, Your Royal Highness.” A silky voice cut through the tension like a knife, and I almost jumped around to face the smirking face of the Ultimate Philanderer as he sauntered past my group. “I can’t believe you all just up and left me alone like that. Particularly you, dearest Ingrid. Don’t you know you’re dearer to me than any-“

“Can it, Sylvain.” Ingrid cut him off sharply. “If you have so much breath to waste waxing poetic, you can spend it apologizing for being such a complete disaster to speak to. I’m still astounded you-“

“Ingrid, not now.” Dimitri cut her off quickly, an urgent look suddenly popping up into his eyes. “We needn’t talk about pointless things until the proper time, correct?”

Ingrid’s mouth popped open and shut rapidly, and she looked away, suddenly abashed. “Absolutely, Your Highness. My apologies for my own lack of discipline.”

I stared after them, my curiosity now piqued completely. Something very suspicious was happening with the members of the Faerghus nobility, all of a sudden. My initial instinct desperately wanted to call them out on it immediately, but it probably wouldn’t do to cause a scene in the middle of the group like this. Perhaps it would be best to approach Dimitri on my own once all of this was over and done with.

“Anyways, has anybody seen Ashe? I thought he would have been the first one back here, but I haven’t seen him at all since we left. You don’t suppose something happened?”

Edelgard scoffed across from the prince. “Have you really lost track of one of your own classmates so quickly? We have a rule in place regarding travel, as you remember. Why was a single one of your house members allowed to travel alone in the first place?”

The prince’s face went pale as he recognized the implication of the Ultimate Emperor’s words. “You don’t think…he couldn’t have gotten…you know, right? And now that I think of it, where is that Ultimate Brawler of yours, Edelgard? Isn’t it suspicious for him to be absent in a time like this, as well?”

“Nope, Nope!”

The voice echoed out across the open air, and all the students whirled around to locate the source. Of course, it was Monokuma, once again seeming to appear from out of nowhere into the middle of the gathering. The small bear laughed uproariously.

“Puhuhuhu! I think the two of you ought to rethink your strategies a bit if you’ve managed to make such a mess of things already, hm? Or did you think I wouldn’t notice what’s been going on?”

Now both Edelgard and Dimitri seemed shocked, but the bear seemed to pay them no mind. “Oh, darn it. Where was that Demonic Beast, anyways? Hey! Over here, you idiot!”

A loud rumbling echoed across the monastery, followed by a lumbering sound as a beast audibly approached the classroom. Edelgard warily moved backwards, posing a hand behind her as if to grab at some sort of hidden weapon. But the Demonic Beast, once again, didn’t seem intent on harming any students. It simply lumbered forward, lowering its head down next to Monokuma. The bear motioned impatiently, and the beast opened its mouth slowly, showing its massive teath, rolling tongue, and-

“Blargh!” Two young boys clawed their way out of the beast’s mouth, breathing desperately for air as they heaved themselves onto the grass. Unmistakably, they were very definitely the Ultimate Thief and Brawler themselves.

“I thought…I was going…to die.” Ashe gasped painfully. “Not to mention the smell…I’m going to smell like monster for the rest of my life.”

“The hell was that, you furry bastard?” Caspar didn’t hesitate to turn angrily towards Monokuma. “I thought you said you wouldn’t do anything to hurt us.”

“Ah, ah!” Monokuma held up a paw to silence them. “I said, or rather, meant to say that I wouldn’t harm you unprovoked. Like I said, you’re not allowed to act against me, the degree of which I’m able to set. If that means trying to fight Demonic Beasts I’ve set up-“ he motioned to Caspar, who looked away abashedly. “Or catching you trying to nab valuable secrets only I’m allowed to know…” His paw moved towards Ashe, who looked down with a bright red face. “I invoke any rights whatsoever to enact punishment upon you. That beast could most certainly swallowed the two of you whole, you know. Think on that before you act against me again, hm?”

The bear left to waltz to the middle of the classrooms, and the two rogue students made their way to the respective classrooms. I kept my ear out to see their leaders’ reception.

“That was an excellent attempt, Ashe.” Dimitri whispered painfully. “I can only apologize for placing you under such a dangerous attempt. I should have known better than to gamble a life so dangerously with such little potential for reward.”

“And how strong would you say that beast was, Caspar?” Edelgard asked curiously. “If there is any chance all of us combined can even break past a single one of them, it would be to our immense benefit.”

Caspar simply shook his head. “Sorry, Edelgard. As far as I can tell, these things are much stronger than anything that existed back in the Empire. Especially without our relics or battalions, I don’t think we stand a chance as it is.”

 _Interesting_ , I thought to myself as the bear began his introduction. It seemed that the prince and empress were making their own moves to try and end the game early. Both were impossibly naïve and uninformed in their own rights, of course, but they were strong attempts nonetheless. _Very interesting, indeed._

“Now, then. I’ve been hearing some strong concerns from all of you in regards to certain individuals and persons that you might consider close to you, or dear to your heart. And as impassioned and tender as those sentiments may be, I simply can’t be bothered to give you all the information you want from me just to satisfy your sense of curiosity. Which is why I decided to enact this incredibly engaging and enjoyable motive for all of you to enjoy! Please, please, step inside your classrooms, take a seat back, and enjoy your new method of motivation!”

None of us wanted to step forward, but neither did any of us particularly want to defy him at this point. This situation already seemed dangerous enough as it was, and Monokuma had just given us a taste of what would happen if we defied him more than he appreciated. To push at this stage would be a horribly ineffective use of precious time and people. I took a step in, leading my class. Presently, I realized Cyril had taken the liberty of joining alongside us. The thought warmed my heart, if only a little.

Line up along the class were a few sets of monitors, all displaying different names. Of course, all the names were the names of different members of the class. I felt a chill run down my spine as I saw a monitor briefly flash the name “Khalid” before immediately shifting back to the regular “Claude”. 

The monitor had no music when I touched the screen. It also didn’t have any video, or a massive display, or anything that looked like it would be particularly eye-catching. The only thing I saw when I booted the screen up was the layout of an area of land. It looked familiar, somehow, but nothing particularly interesting. It even took me a moment to realize what the land I was looking at even was.

It was the area just in front of a massive eastern fortress, a stretch of land known across the continent as “Fodlan’s Throat”. But, what could this area of land possibly be used as a motivation for?

The screen shifted suddenly, and I heard echoes of fear, screams of despair, emerging from all different corners of my classroom. But I couldn’t make sense of any of that, and I couldn’t even turn my eyes to see what my classmates were seeing. Because right there, in the middle of the screen…

The land was covered in rows- no, mounds of bodies. The ground was a crimson mix of blood and dirt and grime, and it was impossible to tell the identities of even a single soldier. Torn banners were the only discernable piece that I could see among the battlefield: the twin banners of the Knights of Seiros and the Almyran Army. 

I felt my heart close up in absolute terror. 

There had been skirmishes on Fodlan’s Locket, of course; more than could be accounted for. But there had never, in all my time of existence, ever been a battle this bloody, a skirmish that caused this much devastation to both sides. Whatever had happened here, it had happened without even a sliver of knowledge being delivered to me. There was no chance this had happened while I was still aware of anything happening at the throat, either in Fodlan or Almyra. This was an even that transpired outside of any sort of history I was aware of.

“Puhuhuhu! Some of you get it already, don’t you?” 

I looked around my class to see looks of confusion, shock, and horror displayed on all my classmates’ faces. The brief glimpses of screens I saw were completely different from my own; some showed what appeared to be innocent civilians sprawled at the feet of Demonic Beasts, while others still showed cities that looked terrifyingly close to Deirdru itself. There was no way a recent war could have happened near there, though…right?

“Don’t rely on your memories for everything, chumps!” The bear roared evilly. “After all, You never know what to expect when you’ve got something missing in that head of yours.”

“Those images…” I didn’t feel like I was speaking, though the sound of the words was definitely my own. “What were those? How did this stuff happen without us even knowing? There’s no way…there’s absolutely no way!”

“Oh, isn’t there?” The bear’s malicious smile grew deeper, and I felt my heart clench. “After all, you never know what war could bring about.”

My heard felt like it stopped, and I stumbled back. “…War?”

Monokuma leaned back with an evil, self-satisfied look plastered on its face. “Oh, yeah? I didn’t tell you guys already, did I? Well, then. Here it is, nice and loud for all of you.”

The bear turned to look directly at me, and I could feel its eyes tear into my very soul. Just looking at him made me want to hit something with everything I had, all of a sudden.

“The first motive, and the theme for your first killing is…Disasters in Warfare.”


	3. A Motive to Kill

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Claude helps investigate the other students after Monokuma presents a disastrous motive. Most of the motives seem to line up, aside from two students in particular who seem to have a jarring difference.

The rest of the night was spent in complete and utter silence. The face of every single student in the monastery was full of devastation, confusion, or complete fury. Small conversations were made here and there: words of consolation, small inquiries that led nowhere, or mutters of disappointment or despair. But the moment Monokuma stopped laughing at the expressions on our faces and took his leave, we disbanded to return to our rooms.

I spent the night just looking up at my ceiling, completely unable to sleep. The scene at Fodlan’s Throat was permanently etched into my mind, a devastating display of hatefully spilled blood drenching the earth and flowing into the waters beyond. Almyrans and Fodlan natives alike cut down without rhyme or reason, willfully spilling their lives for the sake of destroying someone who was different. This was exactly the type of scenario I had come to Fodlan to prevent, and I had no idea what the end result even was. Monokuma hinted that the answer lay in memories that had somehow been removed from us, but if that was the case then how were we supposed to find any reasonable answer?

A knock rang out from my door, and I jolted up in confusion. There shouldn’t have been anybody up at this hour, and I certainly wasn’t expecting any visitors beside. I leapt up and made my way to the door, but my hand froze as I grasped the knob.

_A motive…start the killing game…trust nobody…_

I withdrew my hand slowly as the words echoed through my head. What was I thinking? Monokuma had just given everyone a prime motivation to enter the killing game in complete earnest with no holds barred, and here I was trusting the first hint of meeting up with someone alone without even a second thought. It was like the first person to die in some sort of ghost or horror story. I was better than that…right?

“…Claude?” The petulant, uncertain voice quavered out past the door, and I cursed to myself. Hesitantly, and fully aware of how stupid I was being, I opened the door very slightly to get an obscured vision of Hilda. She must have noticed the suspicion in my eyes, because she raised her hands in a surrendering gesture. “I’m unarmed or whatever, I swear. You can even frisk me, if you’re desperate. But I really need to talk.”

I was still tempted to refuse, but there was a look in her eyes. It was weirdly intense, and at the same time…was it fear? Or just intense concern? I couldn’t really tell. Against my better judgement, I opened the door wider.

“Be my guest.”

Hilda wasted no time barging into my room. She waltzed straight to the center of my room, turned on her heels, and stared me down as she leveled a finger in my direction.

“All right. I know that I’m asking an incredibly personal question just to satisfy my own peace of mind, so I’m letting you take an extra big favor from me in response. Whatever you want from me, anything you want aside from dying for you, and I’ll do it.”

That alone was enough to stop me in my tracks. I didn’t normally like being questioned, but there was a sincerity and focus when Hilda said that to make me pause. Somehow, deep down, I had an idea of what she was about to ask. And yet, I felt completely unafraid to rise to the challenge she set forth regardless of the admittedly tempting reward she promised.

“…Okay, shoot.”

Hilda didn’t hesitate.

“The motive videos. What did you see there?”

My throat closed up as I stared the Ultimate Heiress down. The look in her eyes made it clear enough I wouldn’t be getting any lies or tricks past her just on the spur of the moment, but…was sharing my motive for murder particularly good for either of us? 

“Hey, Hilda. Are you sure this is a good-“

“Almyrans and Alliance Soldiers at Fodlan’s Throat, right? Lots of blood, lots of death. That’s what you saw, wasn’t it?” Hilda’s stare suddenly wavered, and she looked away from me shamefacedly as she crossed me to sit on my bed. “I…caught a glance of your screen when I recoiled from the shock of seeing it. I’m sorry, I know I shouldn’t have peeked or anything, I just…caught it.” She stopped and took a deep breath as she shifted on my mattress. “The thing is…I get why I saw it. My family’s stationed right at Fodlan’s Throat and the soldiers there are all people under my family’s command. If they’ve been compromised, I have a lot to worry about, and the bear probably wants me to kill someone to get the info I want. What I have an issue with, though, is you.” Her gaze leveled sharply, and she looked up at me with suspicion in her eyes. 

“Why are you supposed to care so much about Fodlan’s Throat, or the Almyran army? Why specifically you, Claude?”

Panicked, I tried forcing an easy smile in an attempt to de-escalate the situation. Regardless of the killing game situation, or perhaps in addition to it, it felt incredibly unsafe to reveal myself at this point.

“Oh, come on, Hilda. You do remember I’m supposed to be the leader of the Alliance, right? It only makes sense for wars occurring at the border to be in my concern. In fact, wouldn’t it be weirder if I didn’t see something like that?”

Hilda shook her head resolutely. “Ignatz had Deirdru on his screen. Dorothea had the Bridge of Myrddin. Fodlan’s Throat wasn’t even close to the only place in the Alliance to get hit, and it wasn’t even the most important place for war to have broken out. And yet it was the only place for you, a complete stranger to the Alliance and sudden heir popping up out of nowhere, to see. Don’t you think that’s a little suspicious…Khalid?”

My heart dropped. I turned slowly to the pink-haired girl, who now looked at me with a look mixing contempt, fury, and satisfaction.

“You looked at my screen for more than just a glance, Miss Goneril.”

Hilda responded by setting her face rigidly, locking her jaw out into a petulant and defiant gesture. “If you want to keep me quiet after this, I don’t mind if you go ahead and try to kill me. But I need to know the truth about you, Claude. You’re…Almyran, aren’t you? If that’s the case, then what were you sent here to do? This whole killing game couldn’t have been your idea, or else you wouldn’t have had the motivation that I did. And I doubt you’re exactly careless about the fact that so many of your people died at Fodlan’s Throat, either. So ,what’s the big deal, here?”

“Hey, hey, Hilda. Come on, listen.” I held my hands out in a placating gesture, desperately trying to get the Heiress under control. She only responded by glaring at me, eliciting a sigh of defeat from me as I plopped down beside her. This obviously wasn’t going anywhere unless I gave a little.

“All right, here’s the deal. You’re right about me being from Almyra, okay? But aside from that, I’ve got nothing about how this whole battle-war thing broke out. Gods, the entire reason I even came here was to try to get Fodlan to open up a bit to the outside nations and help open relations to Almyra. I can’t imagine what could have possessed a war to start over all that, though. I only have to wonder that we’ve been gone for way longer than we all think we were, and that everyone’s started blaming each other outside Garreg Mach for the disappearances of their most precious nobles or whatever.”

Hilda pursed her lips and nodded; her eyes suddenly very distant. “I wonder, indeed…” 

We stayed like that a little while longer, simply pondering the possibilities silently. During that entire time, I couldn’t think of any reason that remained particularly encouraging or helpful to our current situation. If anything, the possible causes became just more and more depressing as time went on.

“Hey, Claude. I think…it’s probably best for me to head out, now. Sorry for bothering you about this. Feel free to let me know what favor you want tomorrow or something, yeah?” I didn’t look up as Hilda leaned off my bed lazily, dusting off her blouse as she made my way to the door. She hesitated as she opened it up to the hallway. “Aside from that…I don’t plan on acting like this conversation ever happened once I leave this room. It’s not like it’s any of my business anyways, after all.” 

I merely nodded my response, too wrapped up in possibilities and consequences to really pay her any mind. Though, thoughtless as I was, I still managed to perceive the annoyed huff as she turned on her heels away from me. 

“Sleep well, Claude. Or…as well as you can, anyways.”

That was enough to elicit a mirthless smile from me. After the events of today, there was simply no way I was going to encounter anything close to a good night of sleep.

**

As I expected, the Dining Hall was completely dead the following morning. I arrived later than most to have breakfast as a group, but even when I arrived the mood was incredibly dour. All around the table were students with dark shadows under their red-tinged eyes or a puffy look about their face that evidenced a measure of emotional breakdown. Others had far-off and distant looks that betrayed an attempted mien of aloof carelessness about the situation we were in. And others still…

“We seem to be missing Marianne, Dorothea, Ashe, Ignatz, and Cyril this morning.” Edelgard noted drily. “Perhaps the house leaders for Faerghus and the Alliance can explain why their group members are failing to abide by the principles we set in place for our own safety?” Dimitri turned to rise against her painfully obvious provocation, but Ingrid pulled slightly on his arm to keep him in check. I found it interesting how much more in control she seemed to be in comparison to the heir apparent.

“Ah, sorry for being late.” A voice echoed from outside the hall, and I turned to see Ashe smiling wanly as he leaned against the doorway. The kid looked exhausted, as though he was struggling to even keep his eyes open or to stand on his own two feet. Dimitri made his way carefully to the Ultimate Thief, concern very evident through his motions. 

“Ashe? What happens to be the matter? Are you not feeling well?”

Ashe shook his head ruefully as he looked down from the prince’s eyes. “Ah, no, that’s not it. I just couldn’t sleep a wink last night, and I got up this morning feeling absolutely dreadful. I’m not sick, though. I made sure of that before I came down to the hall.” 

Dimitri grimaced uncertainly as he turned away from the boy. “If you’re sure, then I won’t press you. Just be sure not to overexert yourself today, all right?”

I watched as Ashe made his way silently to the table. He didn’t seem to be in particularly poor condition, aside from being excessively pale. It was more likely the poor kid was just tired from a mix of the motive videos and his run-in with the demonic beast. A combination like that was likely to make anyone-

“Hey, Ashe! Are you gonna eat all that or just pick away at your food all morning?” Caspar’s voice echoed out across the Dining Hall, attracting stares from everyone present. The two were sitting across from each other, Ashe sullenly picking at his plate while Caspar was desperately trying to pull a bit in towards his side of the table.

“Caspar, please do not be aggravating Ashe while he is disturbed.” Petra sighed with frustration. “After all, he is to be having much tiredness from the previous night’s trials. Surely you would be understanding of his predicament, after all.”

Caspar made a face as he turned between Petra and Ashe, as though he were trying to explain himself to both at the same time.

“Last night? Ya don’t mean the whole monster thing, right? That was just a load of crap from Monokuma as far as I’m concerned. Though, I guess you should be more worried about Ashe in that respect. I’m almost concerned he was ready to be eaten up himself, if ya know what I mean.”

Ashe looked up sharply at that, a trace of annoyance lighting in his eyes. “Hey, what exactly is that supposed to mean? Of course I didn’t want to be eaten, but what were we supposed to do?”

“Uh, duh doy. Fight our way out, of course. You didn’t see me waiting patiently to get out of there, I tried to bash its teeth out with everything I had!”

“Well, you had the benefit of being close enough to the teeth to do anything! I was doing all I could to keep myself stable before the thing accidentally swallowed me whole, and it’s not like I could see you at all, anyways. It was pitch-black in there the entire time!”

“Excuses, excuses, Ashe. Come on, just admit it. Anyways, I bet a guy like you is totally into vo-“

A slam against the table from Ingrid silenced the pair’s squabbling before it could go any further, and I breathed a sigh of relief. Regardless of everyone’s nerves, it really was too much to be arguing like that this early in the morning. And yet, looking at the two now, even sulking from Ingrid’s silent reprimand…

“Caspar really knows how to cheer someone up, hm? Or…whatever it is you would call that.”

The soft voice behind me startled me, and I nearly leapt out of my seat in shock. In place of doing that, I merely whirled around to see the Ultimate Songstress staring at me with a mixture of mirth and longing set into her eyes. 

“Ah, Dorothea. So you managed to come down, after all. I’m guessing you had a hard time sleeping like the rest?”

Dorothea’s mouth flattened into a straight line as she sat next to me. “Something like that. It’s mostly just that all of this is so damned depressing…I honestly had a hard time getting myself up out of bed to come down here. Doubtless the others who aren’t here yet feel the same way.” I nodded grimly in affirmation, and Dorothea’s attention drifted back to Caspar. “It really is strange, you know. I wouldn’t have thought the Ultimate Brawler, and a noble at that, would be as down to earth as Cas is. And yet, either through complete luck or whatever, he’s like a little ray of sunshine in the middle of such a terrible time. He managed to pick the mood back up for everyone so quickly, don’t you think?”

As I looked back at the group, I noticed that the aura was, indeed, a bit lighter than when Ashe had entered. Ashe and Caspar were the focal point of the hysterics, with Ashe now stubbornly trying to wolf down his food before Caspar could make a go at it himself, all the while protesting that Caspar was being a hinderance. Petra and Ingrid tried to keep the two apart, but I could notice both were hiding slight grins on their faces as they were doing so. The rest of the students were downright laughing and jeering over the scene, with even Dimitri and Edelgard laughing and joking with each other as they watched the two go on. It was a temporary fix, of course, but even a momentary lapse of hilarity was enough to raise my spirits a little.

“There, I finished my plate, Caspar. Are you absolutely satisfied with yourself?”

Caspar, of course, pouted as everyone began taking their leave from the Dining Hall, put out that he hadn’t been able to grab more food. 

“I’m telling you, I need more! Leonie already took all the leftovers to give to Marianne, Ignatz, and Cyril, so I’m left here until that dumb bear refills the stocks! What am I supposed to do until then?”

“Perhaps we could while away the time by talking…as a class, of course.” Hubert interrupted the conversation with a low chuckle, and I felt the hairs on the back of my neck stand up a bit. Suddenly, I decided that whatever the Ultimate Advisor wanted to discuss was something I absolutely wanted no part in talking about.

“Talking?” Caspar’s head tilted to the side, similarly to a confused puppy. The Ultimate Brawler was clearly not as instinctual as the rest of the class, many of whom were looking at Hubert with the same level of distrust I felt. “What do you mean, ‘talk’? We’ve already talked about every way we can escape, how strong the beasts are, what we know about the area…”

Hubert held up a hand to silence Caspar. “I do not mean about means of escape. Rather, I want to discuss plans for preventing certain disaster among this group. I mean, of course, the potential motives we may have for starting this killing game Monokuma wishes to make us participate in.”

Caspar pouted sullenly, resting back against the counter at the Dining Hall. “You mean the motive videos, right? What makes you want to talk about something like that? There’s definitely no reason to-“

“Actually, there’s every reason to discuss it.” Hubert interrupted once again. “If we can understand the potential motives for murder, we’ll have a much greater chance of being able to prevent it and keep ourselves safe and secure. It’s only logical to think about these things in such a way.”

The atmosphere in the room was less than receiving of Hubert’s logic. Dorothea huffed.

“Somehow, Hubie, when you say it that way it sounds more sinister to talk about it than to keep it a secret.”

“Nonsense.” Edelgard huffed. “I agree with Hubert that it only makes sense for us to discuss our motives in depth and wipe away any uncertainties that could lead to a motive for murder. Everyone, please cooperate and share what it is you all saw.”

The room went silent as everyone simply stared back at the emperor. After a long pause, she sighed and put a hand to her head.

“Fine, then. I’ll start us off if it’s so necessary. The motive I received was from Empire territory, specifically that of Fort Merceus. I can’t speak as to what happened, but the fort seemed to have been entirely destroyed for some reason or another. Even ashes were barely there to show signs of the fort’s existence at all. As to why that may have been a motive…” Edelgard paused, her eyes slightly out of focus, before she began anew. “I can only imagine the state the Empire could be in if Fort Merceus fell in such a destructive manner. I imagine Monokuma wishes for me to commit murder in order to understand what state my empire is currently in.”

“Ah…” Caspar raised his hand, turning all eyes to him. “I…actually saw something kind of similar, though I guess the motives are different. I mean, Fort Merceus was like a childhood playground to me, so there were a lot of people there that I know…er, knew. I guess things are pretty rough for them now, all things considered.”

Edelgard raised an eyebrow curiously. “Is that so? Then I suppose Monokuma decided that the same battlegrounds could be used for multiple motives. That makes it even more necessary to understand what each other’s links to their respective motive might be. Perhaps Monokuma has linked multiple students together in premeditated attempt to control who might murder another.”

I glanced over at Hilda, who simply smiled painfully back at me. I highly doubted she would be the kind of person to kill for her motive, especially after last night, but the idea Edelgard was proposing was certainly not outside the realm of possibility for Monokuma. Was it possible he was planning to reveal something else that would turn us against each other?

“Ah, speaking of, Claude matches my monitor as well.” Hilda piped up, pointedly ignoring my very angry glare. “We both saw Fodlan’s Throat getting busted open, so that’s probably not good news. We figured it made sense, given I’m heir to House Goneril and he’s set to look over the Leicester Alliance soon.” Her eyes darted to me briefly during the lie before immediately focusing back to the group. “Aside from that, we don’t really know much either.”

The other students further proved the similarities Monokuma was trying to set up; Dimitri and Hubert both witnessed the charred remains of Arianrhod, Ashe and Ingrid saw Demonic Beasts ravaging the Kingdom Capitol, and Leonie and Petra saw Gronder Field lit up in flame. The list went on, with only a single person out of the loop.

“Mine was kinda weird, actually.” Annette mentioned offhandedly. “It was actually a scene I saw…just outside the gates.” 

Naturally, our attention swiveled towards the closed-up drawbridge, the iron-gated bars, and the high walls that blocked the inside of Garreg Mach off from the outside world. All our motives existed beyond these walls, but we had no idea what state things were in because of them. Honestly, at this point I wondered if it was possible that it would be better not to know and just stay here until everything blew over.

If only I didn’t have this damned vision to drive me forward.

“Everything was pretty much broken down, which I kind of expected. I saw…a lot people that looked like students there.” Annette bit her lip before continuing. “They looked dead. But I didn’t recognize any of them, really.” She said this as she glanced over at the childhood trio in her class, all of whom seemed confused whether they wanted to be relieved or even more worried. “In fact, they weren’t even the centerpiece, which I couldn’t even imagine. I know it sounds really silly saying it, but…the centerpiece looked like some sort of massive dragon getting chained down by a bunch of soldiers.”

Edelgard jolted up at that, her eyes bright with a sudden, furious emotion.

“A dragon, you say? Surely you don’t mean something similar to the wyverns we use for battle.”

Annette shook her head furiously. “No, not at all. The dragon was so huge, I don’t think it would be even possible to ride it even with all of us combined.”

A ghost of a smile passed across Edelgard’s face, but it disappeared just as soon as it had arrived. “I can only imagine.” Her voice quavered slightly as she said it, as though suppressing a laugh. “But enough on that. I don’t suppose there would be a reason for you to be so invested in such a scene?”

Annette fidgeted slightly. “Well, my father did used to work here. It would make sense for me to have been worried about his safety, but…I guess I don’t have to worry about that anymore, anyways. Maybe it’s pushing me to figure out who was behind it in the first place? That would make more sense.”

“I’m more astounded that you’re the only one to have that sort of motive.” Edelgard mused. “Perhaps one of the students who failed to attend the meeting at the Dining Hall shares their motive with you. If that’s the case, perhaps we ought to adjourn for now and seek out those who remain unaccounted for.”

The rest of the class affirmed Edelgard’s idea, and we all went our separate ways for the day. Edelgard, Hubert and Dorothea had decided to see if there was any way to access the second floor of the Monastery, which would undoubtedly give us more places to inspect and gather information. Dimitri, Sylvain and Ingrid went off to check around the Cathedral for any signs of documentation or remnants that could clue us in about how long our gap in memory was. Most of the rest of the house members split off into separate groups to question the ones who had gone missing, until it was just me, Leonie, and Hilda. And the person we had left to question was…

“So…does anybody know where Cyril even sleeps in the first place?”

**  
It turned out, Cyril’s ideal place to sleep was “anywhere and nowhere” at the same time. After searching fruitlessly through all the dorm rooms, we ended up finding the kid sprawled out just around the corner of the greenhouses, of all places to be. It was a horrible place to spend the night in my opinion, but the kid seemed completely at peace with it himself, if not a little annoyed after being woken up.

“Ah, wow I’m actually pretty sore.” He groaned as he stretched out his limbs. “How late did I sleep in, ya reckon? I can’t imagine it would be later than 7:00, but the way you all look makes me think it’s later, huh?”

I grimaced to myself. For someone as hard-working and dedicated as Cyril, this was definitely a different side. The poor kid almost looked too depressed to work in his condition. Though, the fact he was like that made me burn with even more curiosity about what he may have seen.

“Say, Cyril, we actually wanted to talk with you. It’s about…what we all saw last night.”

A faint blush crept up onto the Ultimate Custodian’s face, though he did his best to look away before it became too obvious, curling away towards the wall to block us off completely. 

“You talking about the motive videos, yeah? Sorry, but I’m not really sure that I have anything that would help with that. I don’t even really understand what was going on with it.”

Leonie opened her mouth in an angry retort, but I held up my hand to calm her down. It wouldn’t do to yell at Cyril, particularly if he looked this depressed.

“Listen, Cyril. It’s okay if you don’t understand it. Most of us don’t understand out own situations, either. But we’re not going to be able to figure this out if we don’t share what’s happening. Hilda and I were only able to figure stuff out about each other when we shared our motive videos, and people have been coming to conclusions all morning after they shared. Maybe we’ll be able to figure stuff out with you, too.”

The Custodian huffed, turning reluctantly back to me. 

“Fine. But I seriously can’t imagine it’ll be of any help.” His eyes went distant as he recalled, and he squinted in an attempt to fully play back the memory. “It was definitely here, at Garreg Mach. I saw…a lot of soldiers and students laying around.” His mouth flattened into a tight line. “That means…the monastery was attacked, huh? But there was something really weird about it all. There were a lot of devastated houses and crumbling buildings, but they didn’t seem to have been destroyed by the fighting. There were these…faint sparkles of light that kind of scattered over the houses, like something had just magically obliterated them, or something.”

I bit the inside of my lip, trying to keep from smiling. This was potentially the exact scene I was looking for. 

“And what about the rest?”

The younger boy looked up at me, confusion written clearly in his face. “The…rest? I think that was about it, right?”

Now it was my turn to be confused. “You mean that really was it? No dragons, no soldiers, no chains? Nothing like that kind of stuff?”

I thought I saw something flit into Cyril’s eyes, but it disappeared just as quickly as it appeared. He shook his head. “Nope. Nothing big like that. Why, did someone else see something like that?”

“Ah…”It was probably pointless to lie about it, but for some reason I still felt nervous saying it. “Yeah, Annette was the one who had the other motive video. She said the same scene, but there was a dragon involved. I’m not really sure what the deal there was, really.”

“I see…” Cyril’s mouth turned downwards slightly, and he rolled back over to face away from my group. “Well, if that’s it, then I doubt I’ve got much else of use to do. Mind if I rest a little longer before I get back up and working?”

I simply looked at the boy, lying dully on the ground with his back turned towards us. Somehow, this look was completely foreign to the Cyril I knew now. It didn’t make me particularly comfortable, but I didn’t really know what to say in order to fix it, either. Feeling somewhat incompetent, I just rested a hand on his shoulder. 

“Whatever works for you, Cyril.”

**

The dinnertime report was about as useful as usual, which was to say that it wasn’t useful at all. Ignatz and Marianne had the same scenes as each other, which included an attack on Deirdru from multiple factions. The groups dedicated to exploring found absolutely no useful leads, further crushing our hopes for advancing. And once again, Cyril, Marianne and Ignatz refused to join us in eating. It was up to me to tell the rest of the group about Cyril’s slight variation, and the significance therein.

“You’re saying he saw no dragon, but there was a shower of light resting over the areas of destruction?” Hubert questioned. “How very interesting. Perhaps there’s something important there that only Cyril would have had knowledge of. As Her Highness perceived, there’s certainly an aura of import around these motives we’ve been given.”

“ ‘As Her Highness perceived’, is it?” Dimitri asked incredulously. “And what exactly is it the Emperor Edelgard has perceived that the rest of us have missed?”

Edelgard glared, but I was shocked to see her stare directed towards Hubert, rather than towards Dimitri himself. “It is merely a simple hypothesis. I wondered whether there was some hidden significance in the scenes we were given themselves that would provide a clue as to what murder we ought to be expecting; after all, if the murder was to happen due to these motives, there might be something there to help warn us; a specific instance that may lie as a precursor to murder.”

I felt somewhat forced to nod along in agreement with Edelgard. I didn’t like where this line of thought was going, but it did make sense all the same.

“I can’t say it’s a good idea to overanalyze every aspect of the motives we’ve been given, but it’s good to take care and look out for warning signs if you see any hint of something similar to what you saw in the motive scenes. We can’t afford to cease being vigilant just because it happened outside this world; if anything, seeing something that could be replicated here should put us on upmost alert. If anyone sees anything related to a motive they or another person has, it must be reported as quickly as possible, understood?”

“Yes!”

I was a little annoyed at how overwhelmingly everyone supported Edelgard’s decision, as though she were the de facto leader of the group. Granted, looking over at Dimitri it was clear he had no intention of fighting for that position of leadership. And I was more of a strategist than someone to keep the order, anyways. Still, to have someone like her leading was…a difficult proposition.

“Very well, then. I trust all of you to be honest and straightforward. And please, do still remember our three-person rule. It wouldn’t do for us to fall apart after being presented with a single motive.”

The Ultimate Emperor turned on her heels, only briefly looking back to smile haughtily at the rest of her classmates. 

“I trust you all not to disappoint me so early on. Good night.”


End file.
